Bank files foreclosure suit against Wrigley Field rooftop club

(Crain's) - A Wrigley Field rooftop club has started the baseball season under a court-appointed receiver after a suburban bank filed a foreclosure suit seeking $2.5 million.

Prominent local hotel executive Robert Cataldo was appointed on March 22 as the receiver of Lakeview Baseball Club, 3633 N. Sheffield Ave., by a Cook County Circuit Court judge.

The three-story building, overlooking right field, is known to Cub fans for a sign that proclaims "Let's Go Cubs" in Latin.

Another sign contains a convoluted formula, which only Cub fans could understand, that measures the team's post-season futility.

Mr. Cataldo was appointed after lender First Personal Bank said it had "concerns" that money from Lakeview bookings were being diverted to unrelated purposes.

Anthony Racky, a managing director of Lakeview and the owner of a venture that owns the building, was not named personally in the Orland Park-based bank's motion for a receiver.

In its foreclosure complaint, the bank alleges that Lakeview and the venture that owns the building defaulted on two loans beginning in December when it failed to make monthly payments of $27,753. Mr. Racky is a defendant in the case because he guaranteed the loan, according to the complaint filed Feb. 9.

First Personal issued a $2.8 million loan in March 2006 and made a second, junior loan in April 2007 for $350,000. Including past-due interest and other charges, the bank is seeking $2.5 million.

For a basic, $300 membership, fans can watch games from Lakeview's rooftop bleachers or from the third-floor club lounge, according to the 2009 fee schedule listed on the club's Web site. In addition, members pay $90 per game.

Concerns about a possible diversion of funds were raised earlier this year, when only $43,000 was deposited in Lakeview's primary bank account, according to the bank's motion for a receiver. Typically, deposits totaled about $120,000 through January, and $150,000 through February, the motion says.

Mr. Cataldo, vice-chairman and chief operating officer of Schaumburg-based Hostmark Hospitality Group, did not return a call requesting comment. His attorney, David Neff of Perkins Coie LLP, declined comment except to say that the club is still operating.

Under a deal hammered out with the Cubs in 2004, 13 rooftop owners including Lakeview agreed to hand over 17% of their gross revenues.

In March 2009, Mr. Racky sued the Cubs, claiming a Jumbotron blocked his club's view of the National Hockey League's Winter Classic game between the Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings on New Year's Day, 2009. But a federal judge dismissed the case and Mr. Racky agreed to pay the team his fee, according to published reports.

The club was started in August 1988 by Mr. Racky's father, Robert Racky, a Chicago developer who last summer filed a lawsuit unsuccessfully seeking to overturn the sale of the old Chicago Main Post Office.

Lakeview's Latin sign rooting on the team says, "Eamus Catuli." Another sign currently reads, "AC0164101." The letters AC stand for "Anno Catuli," Latin for "Year of the Cub." The numbers represent the number of years since the franchise won a division title, National League and World Series championship.